


Anti-Auspistice

by Kajedhorrors



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Genderswap, Multi, Rule 63
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-27
Updated: 2014-07-28
Packaged: 2018-01-26 17:01:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,598
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1695749
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kajedhorrors/pseuds/Kajedhorrors
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nepeta has feelings. Lots of feelings.<br/>Eridan and Feferi also have feelings. Violent feelings.<br/>Karkat has feelings. Hopeless feelings.<br/>A lot of other people have feelings. Mostly they don't matter.</p><p>A genderswap AU inspired in part by: http://canary-chan.tumblr.com/tagged/genderbend%20au</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Painted Partiality

Nepeta spat into a tray of charcoal dust. His fingers, gray with short and jagged fingernails, dipped into the dish and kneaded the dust and saliva into a paste. He pressed it to the wall and made smooth curved motions. The outline of a spade formed at his fingertips and he pressed his whole palm into it, spreading the ink thinner. He pulled his hand back and used it to roll up his other sleeve. The olive green of his long sleeves was spattered with homemade paints of nearly every conceivable color.

Nepeta payed this no mind. He wiped some of the black off onto the side of his face and dipped his cleaner hand into a shallow tray of fresh teal blood. The creature it belonged to was a few feet away, splayed across a table. It was a long and low creature, all scales and claws. Several of its limbs had been torn away and the blue green liquid pooled across the stone.

The boy rubbed small teal shapes into the wall and dipped back in for more black. Gray and yellow and orange pigments followed. Nepeta spared a moment to look to his right. His shipping wall was expansive, all consuming. It had long since taken up the first wall and extended to the floors and ceilings, to the tables and chairs, eventually it crept past the mouth of his cave and stood in its multicolored beauty in the open outside air. He scrawled a jagged shape with a white pigment and smiled back at it.

Nepeta put his hands on his hips and took a step back. He had definitely improved since the original wall. He spared a glance toward it and winced slightly at the crude miniature trolls he had drawn. He didn't dare erase them, but the creator's curse haunted him every time he looked at his first shipping wall. He turned back to his most recent work and smiled sadly. This was only slightly better. The spitting image of Terezi Pyrope leered at him from the right side of the spade. His jaw and his teeth were equally sharp, his thick red shades gleamed with a catch light. His dark hair was tied behind his head and his eyebrows were thin and arched. At Terezi's side was a girl, staring back at him with open disdain. Her teeth are bared and her dark eyes are wide with rage. Her thick, long, curly hair shone with a deep red color in the highlights.

Nepeta glanced over his shoulder with an exaggerated paranoia. He giggled at his own antics and leaned in close to the picture. He stared at his rough strokes in the rapidly drying paint. He ran a finger across one of the locks of Karkat's hair. He planted a gentle kiss on her stony cheek.

A siren blared and Nepeta threw himself backwards. His claws skittered across the floor as he scrambled to his couch. He threw himself over and rolled into a ball. The hair on the back of his neck stood up and he peeked over the couch.

“I didn't touch her, I swear!” Nepeta squeaked.

He looked left and right. He was still alone. The siren blared another round. Nepeta heaved a sigh of relief and giggled again. He vaulted over the couch and strode quickly to his computer desk. He picked up his husktop and flopped into a nearby fur pile. Nepeta's lusus growled in protest from somewhere deep inside the pile. He just sighed and snuggled into the thick pelts.

Nepeta flipped the husktop open. Pounce poked its head out from under the pile and Nepeta gave it a pacifying pap. Pounce purred and relaxed once more. A message flashed on the husktop screen:

centaursTesticle is calling arsenicCatnip

Nepeta accepted the call with a click and turned his web-cam on. In a few short moments his moirail appeared on the screen. He made an exaggerated salute to the tall athletic woman on the other side.

“Junior ruffiannihilator Zahhak!” Nepeta said with mock severity.

Equius returned the salute and then gave a start. She leaned forward and lowered her brittle sunglasses.

“When was the last time you used your ablution trap?” She asked gruffly. Nepeta wasn't sure why she was asking, but he figured that she would not be satisfied with any answer he could possibly give her.

“This morning.” Nepeta said truthfully.

Equius grimaced. “It's broken then.”

Nepeta blew a raspberry at his moirail. “I've been painting.” He said.

“Humph.” She humphed.

“So how's training?” Nepeta asked, folding his arms behind his head. He grinned lazily.

“It proceeds e%cellently. I am told that I shall greatly surpass my classmates by departure day.” Equius looked away for a moment and then looked back at Nepeta. “You 100k filthy.”

Nepeta shrugged. “How's Aradia?”

“We're getting off track.” Equius blurted, wiping sweat from her brow.

“Off track? Are you fur real?” Nepeta giggled.

“Yes. There is a track and you have pulled us so e%tremely far off of it that the train has ploughed across a nearby field and crushed an innocent herd of majestic hoofbeasts. The hoofbeasts are writhing in pain and regret for this conversation that has careened so far from it's original purpose.” Equius exclaimed quickly.

Nepeta blinked at her and raised his eyebrows. “That was... elaborate. Have you been talking to Karkat or something?”

Equius snorted and crossed her arms. “Your services as the royal auspistice are required.”

Nepeta sighed. “What now?”

“They refuse to e%plain themselves in any adequate fashion. They request your presence. As does the emperor.” Equius places more emphasis on her final statement.

Nepeta's eyes widen. “He's back? And... knows about me?”

Equius nods quickly. “You are practically a palace fixture. Many of the seadwellers wish you would settle here permanently.”

Nepeta rolled his eyes. “On the water? No thanks.”

“Then the beach at least!” Equius said insistently. “If not for your auspistice those two would tear apart the entire ocean!”

Nepeta could tell this wasn't just about his ashen quadrant. He decided to say so.

“This isn't just about my ashen quadrant.”

Equius is silent for a moment and looks downward. She mumbles something inaudible and clears her throat. “Our future is uncertain. I would never question my orders. That makes it all the worse that we will end up separated.”

Nepeta smiled sympathetically. “The fleet makes allowances for quadrants.”

“I am a ruffiannihilator,” She paused, “Will be a ruffiannihilator. Our job is to supervise conquered planets in the wake of the fleet. I will be on Ampora's ship at first, but we will soon be left behind.”

“Equius...” Nepeta said softly.

“It is almost certain that you will come with us. Your auspistice is not enough to keep you here with Feferi. But after that....”

“That's still a long time from now.” Nepeta tried to assure her.

“Less than half a sweep, Nepeta. We are running e%tremely low on time.” She said. Nepeta could see her sad blue eyes in the cracks of her sunglasses. “I just wish we could spend some of that time closer to each other.”

Nepeta bit his lip and didn't say anything for a few seconds. “I'll... think about it.” He blinked. “Um... what was it you called about again?”

Equius furrowed her brow and shook her head. “Feferi and Eridan are fighting again.”

“Right.” Nepeta sighed.

“Your presence is required. I fear what they might do to each other.” Equius says solemnly.

“Yeah.” Nepeta nodded. “I'll be there as soon as I can.”

“The transport is en route.” Equius says. She looks up and down at Nepeta. “Please clean yourself first.”

Nepeta was about to argue when Equius ended the call. Nepeta let out an indignant huff and flopped his head backwards. Pounce meowed moodily from underneath him. Nepeta shut the husktop and tossed it to the side. He stood up and stretched. His tail swayed back and forth. Nepeta decided to take an ablution. For Equius's sake.

 


	2. Chance Chucklevoodoo

The hovercraft had arrived by the time Nepeta was finished cleaning himself. The craft was crewed by drones, as only two castes of adults were allowed on the home-world, and the task of public transportation was beneath the jade bloods and the sea-dwellers alike. Nepeta gave the savage cousins of the trolls a suspicious glance and strutted up onto the deck. He turned and leaned over the railing. Pounce De Leon looked up at him forlornly.

“I'll be back in a few days.” Nepeta said. “Tops.”

Pounce sniffed and turned back into the hive. Nepeta gave one last look at his semi-subterranean hive and its ever-escaping shipping wall. He took small steps to the helm and stood slightly behind the large spiny drone at the wheel. It hissed and cracked at him, exoskeleton rippling in impatience.

Nepeta took a breath to steel himself then affected a confident stride. He stepped in front of the drone and gave a command.

“Set sail...” Nepeta's eyes flicked down to a name tag in a laminate square hanging from the creature's neck. 'Lawrel' it read so “Lawrel.” he said.

The drone chirped in annoyance, apparently at his familiarity, but pulled a lever to its right nonetheless. The sky sloop rose so smoothly that Nepeta never felt a single lurch. Lawrel was evidently an expert pilot.

Nepeta leaned on the bow and stared into the sky. He listened to the movement of massive creatures in the forest far below and the movement of slightly less massive creatures a few yards behind him. Drones climbed the mast and tended to various machinery on the deck. Their movements were fluid and strange.

Nepeta bounced back from the railing as a flock of quack-beasts flew overhead.

“Where's the respite-block?” Nepeta asked cheerily.

Lawrel looked at him with his sunken beady eyes. He gestured a clawed hand towards the back of the ship and let out an unhelpful grunt. Nepeta sighed and walked in the direction he gestured. He strode to the cabin door at the rear bulwark and pulled it open. The room was occupied by a half dozen drones curled up on the floor. They were still. Nepeta crept silently past them and stepped up to the recuperacoon. He lifted a hand to open it and stopped when he heard a slight whimpering noise. He turned towards the sound and saw one of the drones shivering.

Nepeta stood watching the drones tossing and turning, sleeping fitfully without sopor slime. Nepeta couldn't help wonder what they were dreaming about. With some hesitation, Nepeta lowered himself to the ground beside the recuperacoon. Pounce and Equius both had warned Nepeta against sleeping outside of the sopor slime. They worried that the nightmares would traumatize him; to the contrary they fascinated him. The dark collective unconscious was bared in sleep. The heart and tortured soul of every last troll came together as they slept. For many this was terrifying. For Nepeta, it was exhilarating.

Nepeta hugged his jacket close to him and curled into a ball. He listened to the crank of gears and the scuttle of drones as he dozed off.

In the dream, Nepeta sat on a couch. He was not alone. There were many couches. Nepeta wondered why that was. Perhaps he wondered aloud. There was no way to be certain. It did not occur to Nepeta to be certain. Nepeta leaned forwards on the cushion and sprung to his feet. He slipped off the sofa and fell for several seconds through empty air. Nepeta felt like screaming, but he couldn't. Or perhaps he already was.

Nepeta landed back on the couch with a soft thump. He shrugged and looked to his left. A girl was curled up on the couch next to him. Her hair was long and curly and a dark reddish black. Nepeta reached a hand to her shoulder. His hand trembled. Nepeta touched the scratchy material of the girl's black sweater and felt his hand burn. The hair looked wet now. The sweater began oozing a thick licorice slime. Nepeta recoiled, but his hand was stuck fast. The girl secreted horrible boiling oil that singed the couch and Nepeta's flesh and the empty air.

The girl screamed. Nepeta gritted his teeth and put the pain and the fear out of his mind. He tried to wade through the thick black fluid, tried to reach her. His flesh burned and melted and soon his body was gone, and he was left with nothing but a white hot burning. The girl looked so far away, but her voice was so close. Nepeta tried to push forwards again, but he felt a snag on the back of his coat. He was being pulled backwards.

The pain dulled, but his panic rose. Nepeta knew that he had to get to the girl. He could still hear her screaming. His ears rang and he struggled against the grip behind him. He began begging and crying. He heard a strange voice just under the deafening noise and he felt scared. Nepeta tried to pull away one more time before-

“Hey, hey, HEY!” The voice said. Nepeta stopped struggling and opened his eyes, though he had not known they were closed. Perhaps they were not.

Nepeta stared at the girl in front of him. Not the one on the couch, she was nowhere to be seen. This girl was taller (taller than Nepeta even), with shorter hair and much longer horns. Her face was plastered with a thick white make-up. Her expression was one of concern and confusion.

“It's okay, it's okay.” The girl said. Nepeta breathed heavily and looked left and right.

“What...” He asked.

“Ya'll shouldn't be here, you know?” The girl said. “They say it's not good for you.”

“I...” Nepeta choked. “I dream all the time, but it's never been like...”

The girl smiled sympathetically. “Yeah. You got all up in one of the motherfuckers that done went bad all of a fuckin' sudden.”

Nepeta's nose crinkled. “What do you mean a bad one?”

The girl waved a hand. Nepeta now realized that the hand had been on his shoulder. “Not a motherfuckin' thing.”

“Oh.” Nepeta said, no longer curious. Perhaps, he thought, he never was curious.

“I'm Gamzee.” The girl said.

Nepeta's brow furrowed in distant recognition. “You're Equius's furend?”

Gamzee looked surprised. “Motherfuckin' miracles.” She chuckled.

Nepeta shrugged. “I'm Nepeta.”

“Pleased as I could fuckin' be to meetcha!” Gamzee said.

Nepeta took in the troll's appearance. She wore an oversized t-shirt and a pair of polka-dot pajama pants. She had no shoes and her nails were long and filthy. She smelled quite strongly of sopor slime, but Nepeta couldn't see why that would be. If she had been in a recuperacoon she couldn't have been talking to him.

“Why do you smell like that?” Nepeta asked.

Gamzee cocked her head to one side and sniffed the air. She looked bewildered, as if she had completely forgotten that she even had a nose until a moment before. She shrugged her broad shoulders in answer.

Nepeta shifted uncomfortably. “Alright then,” He said, “Why are _you_ dreaming?”

Gamzee scratched her head. “Uhm....” This one seemed to have stumped her too until her face brightened unexpectedly. “Chucklevoodoo.”

Nepeta blinked and looked at the insignia on the girl's shirt. Sure enough it was a deep purple. Nepeta swallowed and nodded at the girl. He felt like this revelation should make him scared of her, but she looked too... silly... to properly intimidate anyone.

“You're pretty furendly for a subjugglator.” Nepeta said plainly.

Gamzee began chuckling and honking loudly. Nepeta grinned at her sheer mirth. This too seemed like something that should have struck fear into his heart, but again it failed to do so. Gamzee shook his head.

 

“Well, I thank you for bein' all honest in here and thank you further for bein' motherfuckin' sweet enough to say so.” Gamzee giggled. A couch appeared out of nowhere and she flopped back onto it. She sighed contentedly and patted the couch cushion beside her. Nepeta lowered himself onto the couch and crossed his legs.

“I'm just all up in here muckin' around with dreams and tryin' to have some motherfuckin fun, you know? Brighten up this little corner of madness like a fuckin' cairo overcoat, you feel me?” Gamzee asked earnestly.

Nepeta nodded, though he could just barely 'feel' her. “That sounds nice... Thanks. For saving me, I mean.”

Gamzee waved a hand dismissively. “Ain't no motherfuckin' thing, pretty-boy!”

Nepeta laughed. “If you say so. It was... pretty bad for me...” Nepeta's expression darkened.

Gamzee shrugged. “Kar's been all moody lately. In and motherfuckin' out of the dreamscape.”

Nepeta tensed at the mention. “Kar- _kat?_ ” He asked.

Gamzee nodded slowly. “You know the motherfucker?”

Nepeta nodded even more slowly. “A little.” He liked to think he knew her more than _a little_ but that was the kind of thing Nepeta promised himself to never bring up to anyone.

“Whatever.” Gamzee said with a bemused expression.

Nepeta and Gamzee sat in silence for a while. A fridge floated by and Gamzee pulled it closer with an invisible rope. She opened the door and pulled at least a dozen bottles of Faygo out of it, holding them in her mouth and in the crooks of her arms to get as many as possible. When she was done she thrust out a long leg and slammed the fridge shut. The fridge bounced off her leg and shot off as if there was no gravity. Perhaps there was not.

Gamzee pointed a Faygo bottle at Nepeta and spat another bottle out of her mouth; it floated in front of her face. “You're all.... fading and shit.” She said slowly.

Nepeta looked down at his hands, only to realize that he could see his legs through them. Perhaps he always could. No, he couldn't. He flexes his fingers a few times. “Does that mean I'm waking up?”

Gamzee stares at the Faygo bottle with an absent smile. She nods slowly.

“Will I remember this?” Nepeta asked frantically as his arms began to dissipate into a formless mist.

Gamzee quirked an eyebrow. “No motherfuckin' guarantees.”

“I'd like to... I don't want to forget you. Or what I've learned here.” Nepeta said.

Gamzee chuckles. “You don't up and learn shit here. Dreams are just dreams. They don't mean nothing.”

Nepeta frowned and thought of the girl and the burning tar. He had to believe that it meant something. He knew it meant something.

“Later kitty-boy.” Gamzee said, twisting the lid off a bottle of Faygo.

She sounded so distant now. Nepeta felt himself floating away.

 


	3. Illustrated Infinism

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nepeta arrives at the highblood palace and instantly becomes a rare and valuable commodity.

The ship was relatively silent when Nepeta awoke. One of the drones was shaking him awake, a little roughly. Nepeta blinked up at him and studied the name tag hanging from its neck. It read “Jefris” which Nepeta thought was just plain weird.

Nepeta thanked Jefris and sprung to his feet. He hurried out of the cabin and onto the deck, where he collided with a solid wall of muscle. He let out a small squeak as he fell backwards. Equius's hand grabbed his own and pulled him back to his feet.

“I am e%tremely sorry for that.” Equius said. She dusted Nepeta's jacket off and stood him up straight.

“No problem.” Nepeta chirped. He smiled widely and leaped onto Equius in a pouncegreet.

Equius stood her ground and caught Nepeta as gently as she could. She had been getting better at hugs lately, a fact Nepeta appreciated. The moirails slipped out of each others' grasp and stood on the deck, flanked by a dozen idle drones. Nepeta and Equius made for the gang-plank, but a thought gave Nepeta pause.

The cat boy turned towards the drones and they stared at him with dull anticipation. “Bye Lawrel, bye Jefris, Thanks everyone.”

The drones gave a few confused clicks and nodded in acknowledgment. Lawrel crossed his arms and stared at Nepeta as he climbed off the ship.

Equius shook her head slowly.

“What?” Nepeta asked.

“You shouldn't address the drones.” She said, turning on her heel and marching ahead.

The 'Palace' was a communal semi aquatic city for sea-dwellers and all their favorite low-bloods. It was was an enormous gothic structure decked out in more gold than Nepeta had ever seen anywhere else. Massive glimmering statues of a muscular sea-dweller stood perched on every balcony and in every open courtyard. It might be a little tacky if the commissioner hadn't been so aware of his hilarious vanity. Each statue was like a selfie, with the same subject in a different sexy, badass, or playful pose each time. Nepeta couldn't help but grin at the duckface on the flexing idol to his left.

Nepeta hesitated for a moment, then addressed Equius triumphantly. “If I'm not supposed to talk to them, why do they even have name-tags?”

Equius shook her head and sighed. “We believe it to be Prince Peixes's doing. It may be one of the things he and Ms. Ampora are fighting about. It is not the business of a blue-blood to ask such things. Therefore the majority of us simply ignore it.”

“Well that's not very nice.” Nepeta frowns. “What if they like the names?”

“I assure you they do not.” Equius mumbles.

Nepeta opens his mouth to speak again when a pair of trolls about his age run past. Equius calls out to them. They stop in their tracks and stand at attention. Nepeta notices that they are dressed similarly to Equius.

“What is the e%citement?” Equius demands. Nepeta frowns at her word choice.

“The royals are trying to e%terminate each other.” One of them barks. _Seriously?_

“Did you teach them that?” Nepeta asks.

Equius ignores him. “The situation is e%tremely dire. I should have called you sooner.” She shakes her head and falls in between the other two. The trio of midbloods march down the corridor with Nepeta jogging along behind them.

The glass tube opened up into a large open room full of round platforms surrounded by salt-water pools that led into the submerged portions of the palace. A half-dozen bioluminescent chandeliers hung from the ceiling by glowing organic threads. Very suddenly there became only five chandeliers as a massive bolt of white energy arced through the nearest one and caused it to erupt.

“You crazy beach!” Feferi shouted.

“Basshole!” Eridan shouted back.

The prince looked as regal and strong as a prince should. He stood six feet tall with flowing waist-length hair. He wore a short black wetsuit with his symbol in tyrian pink. His body was adorned with shining golden jewelry and a long multicolored sash. Feferi's round eyes were fierce behind his pink goggles. He looked like more than a match for the girl on the opposite platform, were it not for the large blue harpoon gun clutched in the girl's multi-ringed fingers.

“The next one wwon't miss!” Eridan barked, pushing her thick square glasses up her pointed nose.

The shooter's large violet cloak billowed behind her. She wore a black tank-top tucked into a pair of blue striped pants that matched the long scarf wrapped around her neck. Her hair was short and black with a jagged tuft of purple styled to hang over her right eye.

 

“You sure about that?” The prince chuckled darkly. “I doubt you could hit me with that rusty piece of driftwood if you tried!”

 

Nepeta watched in awkward terror as Eridan made several angry noises and fired off another shot. Feferi leapt several yards into the air towards her, clearing the shot by at least a couple of feet. Eridan's shot crashed into the shield wall, causing it to spark and crackle loudly.

Feferi tackled Eridan to the ground, knocking her gun into a nearby pool.

“Ugh, I'm gonna claww your eyes out!” Eridan shouted from underneath Feferi's larger frame.

“You can't!” Feferi exclaimed, pinning Eridan's arms to the ground. “That is the porpoise of the goggles!”

Eridan swung her knee into Feferi's stomach. The prince grunted in pain and Eridan freed her hands long enough to wrap her hands around Feferi's neck and roll him over. Nepeta watched the two sea-dwellers struggle and swear for several seconds before a he felt a sharp jab in his shoulder. Wincing, Nepeta turned towards the source of his pain. Equius pulled her finger back and raised a single eyebrow above her cracked sunglasses.

Nepeta suddenly remembered the reason he was here and sprinted down the walkway towards Eridan's platform.

“You pathetic piece of pond scum!” Eridan spat.

“You take that back!” Feferi said, trying to claw his way out of a headlock.

“HEY!” Nepeta called.

The sea-dwellers fell silent and turned to look at the newcomer with wide eyes. They immediately released each other and ran up to Nepeta. They enveloped the olive-blood in a crushing group hug.

“Catfish!” the prince glubbed happily.

“It has just been awful!” Eridan whined.

“I'm so glad to see you!” Feferi said.

“I missed you so much!” Eridan sniffed.

The sea-dwellers looked at each other from across their auspistice. Nepeta watched their expressions turn sour as they hastily pulled out of the hug, trying to take Nepeta with them. They each pulled on one of Nepeta's arms and stood silently glaring at the other. Eridan gritted her teeth and jerked Nepeta towards her. Feferi put a second hand on Nepeta's forearm, standing his ground and threatening to tear the boy apart.

“Um...” Nepeta grunted painfully.

The high bloods did not respond. They pulled either of Nepeta's arms and snarled at one another until a woman coughed loudly to get their attention. They turned to look at Equius, who crossed her arms disapprovingly and stared at them. The sea-dwellers blushed two different shades of purple and released Nepeta.

“Thanks Eq.” Nepeta sighed in relief. Equius nodded and stood at attention in front of the other two blue-bloods.

“Now.” Nepeta said. “I'm glad to see you guys too, and I'm here to help. But I don't think I can do that with both of you at the same time. So I'll spend some time alone with-” Nepeta began, before he was cut off by a strong hand on his shoulder pulling him into a half hug.

“Me!” Feferi cheers. “Of course!”

“That's not fair!” Eridan said indignantly. “Wwhy do you get to go first?”

“I-” Nepeta tried to say something, but Feferi tightened his grip and squeezed the breath out of him.

“Because I'm the prince!” He said happily.

Eridan's mouth flapped open and closed a few times like a dry fish before she smirked and took a step back. “Fine.” She said. “You can havve him first, your majesty.”

Feferi gave Eridan a thin smile and narrowed his eyes. “Thank you so very much.”

Nepeta slipped out of Feferi's grip and stood between the two highbloods. “Are you sure you're alright with that Eridan?” Nepeta asked, not wanting to upset the girl.

“Sure I'm sure.” Eridan scoffed. “You go hang out wwith captain cuttlefish for a wwhile. I'll be in my room when you're done.”

“Halibut head.” Feferi growled.

Eridan shook her head and smiled. “I'll just spend a bit a' time with guard girl here, eh?” She said, slipping an arm around Equius's waist.

Equius stood still and silent. A few beads of blue sweat trickled down her forehead. Nepeta gave her a sympathetic look before Feferi put his arm around the smaller boy's shoulders and walked him towards the exit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long. I've been having a lot of computer trouble recently. Hopefully more chapters will be forthcoming. I should have another mollified chapter out before too long as well.


End file.
